Continuous mileage-ticket



(Model.) 2 sheets-sheet 1. l J. P. EASTMAN.

CONTINUOUS MILEAGB UCK-ET. N0. 314,170. Patented Mar. 17, 1885.

(Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet J. P. BASTMAN.

ooNTmUoUs MILEAGE 171011111.y

No. 314,170. Patented Mar. 17, 1885.

jrayu A jmvemo: -mnesses-- l 1 l l f l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN r. EASTMAN, on CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CONTINUOUS MlLEAGE-TICKET.

SPECIFECATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 314,170, dated March 17, 1885.

Application filed August 19. 18S-l. (Model.)

` other.V Fig. 4 showsa number of couponsdetached from the book. Fig. 5 shows the con# dition ofthe book after the coupons in Fig. 4 have been detached.

This invention relates to railway-tickets commonly known or termed thousandmile tickets,7 and consisting of a number of small coupons or tickets, each representing mileage, usually bound in the form of a book. As such tickets are now issued a number of coupons for one mile each are impressed or printed on a small sheet, the separate coupons being partially separated one from the other by means of a perforated mark or line, to facilitate tearing off, and a number of sheets containing such couponsusually enough to represent a thousand miles of travel-are bound together as a book, to be carried by the person holding the ticket, and so that the number required to represent the distance traveled can be readily torn off by the conductor.

It often happens that with the present style of putting up these tickets the tearing off of a certain number leaves a single coupon, or two and three coupons, on a page, to be torn off the next time the book is used; or a few coupons may betorn off from the next succeeding page, and these coupons, being small, are liable to be lost by the conductor or other party handling them, causing considerable trouble and inconvenience in keeping a correct account of the separate coupons belonging to the ticket; and where a number of such tickets are taken by the same conductor from different books thesheets, being separate one from the other, and being usually placed all together, become mixed, requiring considerable labor on the part of the conductor to get the separate sheets and pieces of the same ticket together in order to turn them in; and, again, with l the present style of these tickets considerable trouble is experienced in keeping a correct neet with the first number next torn off, and

so on.

The object of this invention is to overcome the obj ections to this class .of tickets, and have such tickets as capable of being used as an ordinary single ticket; and its nature consists in providing such tickets on sheets connected without becoming disconnected, and leaving those remaining in the book also connected, all as hereinafter more specifically described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, c represents the sheets for shown, twenty single coupons representing twenty miles of travel; but a greater or less number may be used. These sheets are disconnected at the side, but arealternately connected at the ends-that is, the first sheet is connected to the second at the bottom, the second to the third at the top, the third to the fourth at the bottom, the fourth to the fifth at the top, and so on to the full number of sheets; or the connection might be vice versa, sheet one being connected to sheet two at the top, and sheet two tol sheet three at the bottom, so long as the connection between the sheets is alternately at the top and bottom. The length and width of the sheets are to be sufficient for the size and number of coupons desired for each sheet, with a sufficient margin on the side for binding the sheets for the required number of miles into the form of a book, or other form convenient to be handled by the purchaser ofthe ticket and the conductor. As shown, the continuous number of sheets are bound with a cover, b. Each leaf of the book has the coupons arranged in double columns, with a perforated dividing-mark lengthwise between the columns, anda similar mark at the binding edge, and the coupons on each sheet are separated one from the other by a perforated cross mark or line, as shown in Fig. l, such marks or lines facilitating the tearing off of the coupons. The coupons are to be numbered consecutively, beginning with 1, to the end of the number contained in the book, and each coupon may be'provided with a number representing the number of book,

statement of the last number torn off to contogether, to have any required number torn off the coupons, each sheet having thereon, as

and with letters or other marks to indicate coupons belonging to a certain ticket, where the railroad company selling the same, as a number of tickets are taken up by the connsual With the coupons of this class of tickets. The sheets being in effect single sheets, and at the same time a continuous sheet, it will be seen that the conductor in tearing off a given number of coupons to represent the number of miles for which the ticket has been used, although he may tear through one, two, three, or more sheets, will remove the entire number torn off in a single piece, and the remaining coupons will commence with the next consecutive number, and be all united one to the other.

Fig. 4t shows a number of coupons torn off to represent a distance traveled of forty-five miles, andFig. 5 the condition of the book after the tearing off of forty-live miles of travel.

It will be seen from Fig. 4 that the coupons When torn off, although representing fortyive in number, form in effect but a single piece to be handled, and that the coupons remaining on the sheet from which a portion have been torn oli' are connected to the next succeeding sheet, so that when torn off they Will form a single piece withthe further coupons required for the number of miles when the book is next used. This continuous connection between the sheets enables the conductor to remove in a continuous piece any given number required. The several coupons being connected to each other, a simple glance will tell the opening and closing` number, enabling the conductor to readily make his report. The entire number torn off, being all together, require no sorting to determine the ductor, and in reporting the tickets no trouble or inconvenience is occasioned in ndmjr the last number torn oft, as the first numbc4` in the portion remaining in the book at once indicates what the last preceding number tori` off was. The tickets turned in can also be v readily handled by the party whose business it is in respect to the number torn off, and the first and last numbers of the number turned in, with as much ease and facility as with single tickets, as the numbers belonging to any one ticket are all together and run consecutively one after the other.

The book shown in Fig. 2 has twentyve leaves; but usually a. sufficient number 4of leaves for a thousand coupons is to be provided, and in the drawings single lines represent the leaves.4 As shown, each leaf is divided iuto single-mile coupons; but such coupons could be made to represent two or more i miles each by'proper enumeration.

Vhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

A railroad-ticket consisting of a series ot' leaves or sheets bound together in book form, each having a number ot' mileage-coupons, the leaves being connected at alternate ends for tearing off in a single piece the required number of single coupons for mileage traveled, substantially as described.

JOHN l?. EASTMAN.

Titnessesz ALBERT H. Anaius, HARRY T. JoNEs. 

